Kuwait's hosting of the Afro-Arab summit comes in light of emir vision

Kuwait's hosting of the African-Arab Summit comes in light of both its commitment to developing joint Arab and African work and the visions of HH the Amir, said a senior official here on Wednesday. The Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah made the comment during a joint press conference with the visiting Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Araby and African Union Commission Chairperson's Chief of Staff Jean-Batiste Natama on the occasion of the start of pre-summit activities, ahead of the actual November 18-20 event. The vision of HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah is for the third summit of its kind to mark the beginning of an aspired cooperation that will benefit the mutual interests of both regions, said the Kuwaiti minister. The summit will pick up from the first edition in Egypt (1977) and the second in Libya (2010) and its preparations have been duly completed according to the set timeframe, he added. These preparations included 12 meetings in Ethiopia (which hosts the African Union headquarters), Egypt (Arab League headquarters) and Kuwait, whereby all documents pertaining to the event, including the Kuwait Declaration and draft proposals, were compiled. These documents will be handed out to attending nations a month ahead of the event, he said. Meanwhile several cultural functions will precede the summit the first of which begins on Thursday, and these will continue until two days prior to the event, he said. These will include displays of dance and song from both regions by troupes from the member nations of both the AU and the Arab League, and this "will demonstrate the wealth of humanities and cultural legacy that depicts a historic connection between these regions," he said. Also, an economic forum held on the sidelines of the event, between November 11 and 12, will host 600 personalities, which the minister hopes will "adopt proposals that serve the summit's aims." Asked whether the Kuwait declaration will include creating a fund to limit the burden on some of the nations of Africa, he replied the summit will include all of these aspects that serve the interests of both sides. On the reason nations outside of both geopolitical groups were invited like Iran and Russia, he said that Iran heads the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) of nations, while Russia heads the G20 group of industrialized nations, and this group places great importance on the regions. This applies to the UN Secretary General and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) as well, he said. For his part, the Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Araby said that the African-Arab Summit aims to achieve tangible and positive results that will raise the levels of livelihood of people in the region, and "will not be limited to issuing general declarations that do not aspire to adoption." He hoped the talks succeed in instilling the basis of cooperation between Arab and African states and in achieving a unique jump in relations between the sides based on a strategic basis that ensures stability and growth. Kuwait has carried out huge thankful efforts with the AU during the last few months to prepare for the summit through lengthy meetings in Cairo, Addis Ababa and Kuwait, he said, during which "a number of documents were prepared, including the Kuwait declaration and the joint report of the chairperson of the AU Commission and the Arab League Secretariat General." The Arab League chief also noted to sideline events like the economic forum organised by the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development in cooperation with the Arab League and African Union. The event will focus on cooperation in development, trade and investment, along with the role of civil society organisations in boosting this cooperation. Arab-African relations benefit from solid ties and geographic, political, strategic and cultural facts, he added, applauding Kuwait's choice for the event's theme 'Partners in Development and Investment'. On the talks' agenda, he revealed this will include plans and projects aimed at encouraging trade and investment and an ambitious plan set by Arab and African ministers to develop agriculture and food security in both regions. Al-Araby anticipated the meeting to also usher in further joint projects for this partnership to grow further. Meanwhile, the AU Commission senior official Ambassador Natama said the date of the event was "perfect and marks the 50-year anniversary of the founding of the African Union." Both regions have the same aims and that is to achieve tangible results for their peoples, he added. He mentioned the need for the event to focus on issues related to development, particularly as the African continent looks to make use of the resources it possesses. However, he underlined that these resources needed investments to be transformed into wealth, which is why cooperation with the Arab region would be to the benefit of both sides. All 55 AU member nations will be attending the talks in Kuwait, he confirmed, expressing gratitude for Kuwait's hosting of the gathering.